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25 May 2009

Pink, part 2

Not only it is Memorial Day weekend, but I also had the pleasure of attending a friends wedding yesterday afternoon, by the seaside. All the right ingredients for this years debut of the pink pants:

I picked these up the Polo outlet for about $15 the same day I found the green pants. I guess the ghost of Lily Pulitzer was on my side that day, or something.

All morning long, I went back and forth in my mind about what to wear with them; a bow tie?, a striped shirt? Then I realized that when a man wears pink pants, his best bet is to keep the rest of the items really simple. Otherwise, it's too easy to fall into "preppy costume" territory.

So I stuck with a white shirt and navy blazer, and a summery navy and white tie in mini gingham check. For a bit of extra dash, a white square with pink and navy flowers.My favorite thing about these pants is that they're made of oxford broadcloth, almost like a shirt. Very comfortable, and a bit unusual.

The whole thing was finished off sockless, with penny loafers (of course).The tie has some interesting bits about it too. As usual, I found it for a dollar or two at a thrift store somewhere. The brand name is "Paddle" (which is funny, because it's not a rowing paddle so much as a frat house hazing paddle), and it hails from some long gone local Massachusetts store called the Country Store of Concord.The dirty little secret is: it's not silk (gasp!). That's often a deal breaker for me, but this tie is just too sharp too let such a small detail deter me from wearing it. Besides, when I dribbled a little bit of beer on it, it wiped right off with only a paper napkin.The wedding was a lot of fun. A beautiful ceremony outside in a beautiful place, followed by barbecue, beer, and live music provided by a group of my good friends. Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. H, we wish you all the best.

There's of course nothing wrong with non-silk neckties, so long as they're made of wool, cotton, or a similarly acceptable fabric.

But choosing a tie made of two disgustingly artificial fabrics leads to the unfortunate knot you have there. That plus the texture will make it obvious to anyone with taste that you're wearing a poor quality tie. I love your concept of dressing well on a budget, but a rayon/acetate tie cannot be considered good taste...

I would wear the oxford cloth pants in a blue...you should try an oxford cloth tie...I have one from Brooks Brothers...also definitely try out a seersucker..and a wool tie...these are great alternatives to the silk